Lindsey Pallares
The NFL's Annual League Meeting is the next big event on the offseason calendar, bringing together team owners, executives, head coaches, front office personnel, and the media together in Palm Beach, Florida ahead of the draft.
The four-day session includes a full agenda, but the most critical item is the NFL owners' vote on proposed playing rule changes and bylaws. Changes to playing rules and bylaws are submitted by clubs and the NFL Competition Committee, and all proposals must be approved by 75 percent (24) of team owners to be adopted.
Below is a summary of a number of this year's proposals that will be voted on for the 2025 season:
Club Playing Rules Proposals
The Detroit Lions submitted a proposal that aims to eliminate an automatic first down as a penalty imposed for defensive holding and illegal contact. (Rule 8, Section 4)
The Green Bay Packers proposed change would end the use of a play that is commonly referred as the "tush push." The rule change would prohibit an offensive player from pushing a teammate who was lined up directly behind the snapper and receives the snap, immediately at the snap. (Rule 12, Section 1)
The Philadelphia Eagles proposal would align the postseason and regular season overtime rules by giving both teams an opportunity to possess the ball regardless of the outcome of the first possession. The regular season overtime period would increase from a 10-minute period to a 15-minute period in the regular season. (Rule 16, Section 1)
The NFL Competition Committee proposed expanding instant replay's ability to advise the on-field officials on specific, objective aspects of a play and/or to address game administration issues when clear and obvious video evidence is present.
- Instant replay can only be applied to plays in which a flag was thrown.
- A flag could be picked up in situations of a defenseless player, facemask penalty, horse-caller tackle, tripping, or rough/running into the kicker.
The NFL Competition Committee is proposing to make the free kick play permanent with modifications following its one-season trial in 2024. The changes include:
- Changing the dead ball spot to the 35-yard line on a touchback.
- Allowing a team to declare an onside kick at any time if they are trailing.
Club Bylaws Proposals
The Lions are also looking to amend a bylaw that would modify the current playoff seeding format. The change would allow Wild Card teams to be seeded higher than Division Champions if the Wild Card team has a better regular season record. (Article XX, Section 20.2 of the Constitution & Bylaws)
Detroit's third proposal could provide some leeway to team's when it comes to 90-man roster limits. The change would exclude a player placed on Reserve/Injured before or on the day of the 53-man roster cutdown from counting against the 90-man limit, unless such player is Designated for Return. A DFR player is a player cleared to enter his 21-day practice window from the Injured Reserve list. (Section 17.1 of the Constitution and Bylaws)
The NFL Competition Committee proposed a bylaw change that would allow clubs to designate two players for return at the roster reduction to 53 players. (Article XVII, Section 17.16 of the Constitution and Bylaws)
The NFL Competition Committee also is looking to to permit clubs who make the playoffs to receive two additional DFRs increasing the maximum from 8 to 10. (Article XVII, Section 17.16 of the Constitution and Bylaws)
Finally, the NFL Competition Committee proposed Point Differential as the third tiebreaker for awarding contracts. (Article XVIII, Section 18.5 of the Constitution and Bylaws)
Resolutions Proposals
The Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to make changes to what's allowed during the two-day negotiating period prior to the start of the new league year. The resolution change would let clubs during the two-day negotiation period to have one video or phone call with a prospective unrestricted free agent and his agent and permit clubs to arrange for the player's travel upon agreeing to terms with a prospective unrestricted free agent. Travel would still not be allowed until the beginning of the new league year.
The Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns, Houston Texans, Las Vegas Raiders, Minnesota Vikings, Philadelphia Eagles, and Washington Commanders submitted a proposal to permit clubs to prepare kicking footballs (K-Balls) before gameday, similar to the process permitted for game footballs. Currently, K-Balls must be prepped within a 60-minute window on the day of the game.
The Commanders proposal would permit clubs that may qualify for the postseason to obtain scouting credentials for two consecutive games (Weeks 17 and 18) played by a potential postseason opponent. It would also require clubs hosting Wild Card games to provide scouting credentials to all teams within the same conference who are participating in the postseason.
For a full breakdown of all the proposals clickhere.
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